Anime, or Japanese animation (anime fans dislike the word “Japanimation”), is a slickly drawn art form that covers everything from features for children to more adult-themed thrillers. Most stories are thoroughly fantastic, with storylines that are often incomprehensible to Americans raised on Hollywood endings. To be sure, anime is a way of life in Japan, but is voraciously imported by a select few with open minds here in the United States. Locally, the Triangle Area Anime Society (TAAS), one of the student organizations at N.C. State, holds weekly meetings to watch and discuss ongoing anime serials and films, but aims for two big festivals per year. Stop by their 24-hour spring festival in NCSU’s Riddick Hall anytime from Friday night through Saturday night and catch installations of the Bubblegum Crisis or Macross Plus series, witness heart-stopping action in MADOX-01 or Brain Powered, get a love fix from Chinese Ghost Story or just cruise in briefly to find out what the buzz is all about. A full schedule is available on-line at www.ncsu.edu/stud_orgs/taas. See “Special Showings” for details.
